Lamp holder for circular fluorescent lamps



Dec. 27, 1949 J. M. PISTEY 2,492,764

LAMP HOLDER FOR CIRCULAR FLUORESCENT LAMPS Filed Jan. 16, 1946 ZInventor": John M.Pist.eg,

by n p 164M.

His Attorney.

Patented Dec. 27, 1949 LAMP HOLDER FOR CIRCULAR FLUORES- CENT LAMPS JohnM. Pistey, Fail-field, Conn., assignor to General Electric Company, acorporation of New York Application January 16, 1946, Serial No. 641,586

3 Claims. 1

My invention relates to lamp holders and more particularly to lampholders for tubular discharge lamps such as circular fluorescent lamps.

One such lamp holder now on the market comprises an elongated bracket orchannel which extends across the loop of the lamp and which is providedwith laterally extending arms adapted to engage the periphery of thela'mp tube to hold it in position on the bracket. One of the arms isprovided with a receptacle for making an electrical connection with thelamp. The other arm is movable so that the lamp may be easily mounted onor removed from the holder. A lamp holder of this type is disclosed inthe copending application of Frederick C. Dazley, for Lamp holder forcircular lamps, Serial No. 624,036, filed October 23, 1945; and assignedto the same assignee as the instant application.

While for ordinary use, the aforementioned lamp holder holds the lampfirmly in position at all times, under certain conditions it isdesirable to provide means for positively locking the lamp in positionon the holder. This may be desirable under conditions of extremevibration. Or it may be necessary in certain locations to fprevent theftof the lamp.

Therefore, it is an object of my invention to provide a new and improvedlamp holder for I supporting and making an electrical connection withcircular fluorescent lamps, the holder being so constructed as to permitlocking of the lamp at low cost.

In the accompanying drawing, Fig. 1 illustrates a lamp holderconstructed in accordance with .my invention with a circular fluorescentlamp mounted thereon; Fig. 2 is an enlarged view showing one form oflocking means on the lamp holder; Fig.-3 ;is a sectional view throughthe holder taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a view of amodification of the locking means; Fig. 5 is a V1W-3Qf another form oflocking means, and Fig. 6 is aview of a further modification of thelockingfmeans.

Referring to the drawing, Fig. 1 illustrates a lamp holder I constructedin accordance with my invention and which carries a circular fluorescentlamp 2. The holder is supported from a fixture pipe 3 forming part ofany conventional form of lighting fixture.

The lamp holder l comprises a supporting bracket or channel 4 which isadapted to extend across or span the loop of the lamp. It is providedwith two arms or supports 5 and 6 which extend laterally from thebracket and which are adapted to engage the inner periphery of the lampfor supporting the lamp on the holder. One of the laterally extendingarms, in this case the arm 6, is movable with respect to the supportingbracket 4 so that the two arms may be moved relatively to each other topermit mounting of the lamp on the holder. The other arm 5 is fixed onthe bracket and is provided with a contact receptacle 1 for making anelectrical con nection with the base of the lamp. In mounting the lampin position, the loop of the lamp may be pressed against the arm 6 tomove it to the dotted line position shown in Fig. 6 so that the base ofthe lamp may be snapped into position on the supporting arm 5 with thelamp con- .tacts in engagement with the contact receptacle on theholder. Or, if desired, the base of the lamp may first be mounted on thearm 5 and then the lamp tube snapped into position on the arm 6. Thelamp holder thus far described is similar to the holder described in theaforementioned copending application of Frederick C. Dazley. From oneviewpoint, my invention constitutes an improvement over this holder inthat it provides means for positively locking the lamp in position onthe holder.

Turning now to the construction of the holder and referring to Fig. 2,it will be seen that the bracket 4 comprises two nested channel sections8 and 9. The upper section 9 is provided with a bayonet slot H] whichreceives a pin H for pivotally mounting the movable arm 6. A coiledspring [2 is wrapped around the pin II. One

and i3 of the spring engages the arm 6 while the other end I 4 engagesthe upper channel sec-.

tion 9 when the latter is assembled in position. In this way, thetorsion spring I2 is used to bias the movable arm 6 outwardly anddownward-1y into engagement with the tube of the lamp.

The purpose of the bayonet slot I is to facilitate assembly of the partsduring manufacture. The arm 6, pin II, and spring 12 are assembledtogether and then the pin l l is inserted into position in the bayonetslot ID in the upper channel section 9. The lower channel section 8 isthen slipped into nested position on the channel 9 'so that the arm 6extends through an opening l in the lower channel member 8. Thisprovides a quick and easy method of assembling the parts without thenecessity of threading the pin through the arm a from the outside of thechannel sections. In assembled position, the side walls of the lowersection 8 extend over the ends of the pin 1 l to hold the pin inposition and conceal it from view.

In order closely to engage and grip the tube of the fluorescent lamp,the arm 6 is provided with a curved surface 16 which extends around aportion of the periphery of the tube and makes a close and even contacttherewith. The spring [2 biases the arm 6 outwardly so that the arm 6pivots about the pin Ill into engagement with the tube. However, the arm6 may be easily moved against the biasing action of the spring in adirection toward the other supporting arm 5 to permit easy removal ofthe fluorescent lamp from the holder. While for most installations, thespring l2 provides an adequate means for holding the arm 6 in engagementwith the tube, in certain instances it may be desirable to lock the lampin position on the holder.

To this end, the arm 6 is provided with a projection or abutment I!which is engaged by a set screw l8 carried in the end wall of the upperchannel section 9. By threading the screw l8 inwardly into engagementwith the abutment H, the arm 6 is rotated about the pivot pin so that itis locked in engagement with the tubular wall of the lamp. Outwardmovement of the arm 6 is limited by a lip l 9 which will engage the wallof the lower channel 8 at a point adjacent to the opening IS. The setscrew I8 is mounted in a position at the end of the holder so that it iseasily accessible for locking the lamp in position on the holder.

In the form of the invention shown by Fig. 2, the screw [8 is easilyreached for manual operation.

by hand but which requires a special tool. This is of advantage when itis desired to prevent theft of the lamp. To this end I have shown inFig. 5 a screw 2!! located within a housing 2! fastened to the end ofthe lower channel 8. The housing 2| is provided with an opening 22 of ashape to receive a key, or other special tool, for turning the screw 20.This makes a construction less likely to be tampered with than thatshown by Fig. 2 in which the screw I8 is exposed and may be easilyrotated to unlock the lamp.

It should be manifest that the locking screw -rnay be placed at variouspoints on the bracket 4, depending upon the particular installation orlamp fixture in which the holder is to be mounted.

In the-modification shown by Fig. 6 I mount a locking screw 25in thelower channel '8 sothat it may be threaded into engagement with aprojection 26 formed integrally with the arm 6. The projection :26 ismoved upwardly by the screw 25 sothat the arm- B'pivots about the Insome instances, it may be desirable to provide a construction whichcannot be operated pin ll into engagement with the glass tube of thelamp.

The curved portions of the arms 5 and 6 extend around the periphery ofthe lamp tube a suflicient distance so that the lamp is securely held inposition on the holder without danger of falling out even when the lampis suspended from the hold-=- er, as in the showing of Fig. 1.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

l. A lampholder for a tubular lamp formed as 'a loop and having acontact base in its periphery comprising a hollow elongated bracketadapted to extend across the loop of the lamp, a pair of projectionsextending from one surface of said bracket for engaging and supportingopposite sides of the loop of the lamp, both of said projections havingcurved finger-like contours, a portion of a curved surface of which isadapted to engage the periphery of the lamp, a contact receptaclecarried by one of said projections and adapted to'engage the contactbase of the lamp for making electrical connection therewith, the otherof said projections being pivoted to said bracket and being springtensioned with respect thereto in a direction away from said receptaclecarrying projection and further having an abutment portion extendinginto said bracket, and screw means carried by said bracket and adaptedto engage said abutment portion to move said other projection about itspivot into "engagement with'the lamp to lock the lamp in the holder.

2. A lampholder for a tubular lamp formed as a loop and having a contactbase in its periphery comprising a hollow elongated bracket adapted toextend across the loop of the lamp, said bracket being formed of nestingsheet metal channels, a pair of projections extending from one surfaceof said bracket for engaging and supporting opposite sides of the loopof the lamp, both of said projections having curved fingerlike contours,a portion of acurved surface of which is adapted to engage the peripheryof the lamp, a contact receptacle carried by one of said projections andadapted to engage the contact base of the lamp for making electricalconnection therewith, the other of said projections having pivot pinmembers extending from the sides thereof and journalled in openings inthe sides of one of said channels, a coiled spring wrapped around one ofsaid pin members and having one end in engagement with the projectionand its other end in engagement with one of said channels, the springends being arranged to tension said other projection in a direction awayfrom the receptacle carrying projection, said other projection furtherhaving an abutment portion extending into said bracket, and screw meanscarried by said bracket and adapted to engage said abutment portion tomove said other projection about its pivot into engagement with the lampto lock the lamp in the holder.

3. A lampholder for a tubular lamp formed as a loop and having a contactbase in its periphery comprising a hollow elongated bracket adapted toextend across the loop of the lamp, said bracket being formed of nestingsheet metal channels, a pair of projections extending from one surface'of said bracket for engaging and supporting opposite sides of the loopof the lamp,

both of said projections having curved fingerlike contours, a portion ofa curved surface of which jections and adapted to engage the contactbase of the lamp for making electrical connection REFERENCES CITEDtherewith the other of Said projections having The following referencesare of record in the pivot pin members extending from the sides file ofthis patent.

thereof and journalled in openings in the sides of one of said channels,a coiled spring wrapped 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS around one of said pinmembers and having one Number Name Date end in engagement with theprojection and its 11141473 Pieper June 5 1945 other end in engagementwith one of said chan- 1,034,362 Reagan Ja 13, 1914 nels, the springends being arranged to tension 1 2 47 Hough et a1 Jan 9, 1917 said otherprojection in a direction away from the 10 ,240, 59 MgKinnie May 6, 1941r pta e arry proj tion. 2,350,462 Johns June 1944 2,403,968 DansereauJuly 16, 1946 JOHN M. PISTEY- 2,419,965 Pieper "May 6, 1947

